A funding round headed by Temasek-backed Tikehau Capital and Asian financial powerhouse PhillipCapital netted US $5 million for Singapore-based alternative lending startup Helicap. They are both financial institutions with a combined asset under management of more than US $35 billion.
Following the transaction, Grace Tang, executive director of Phillip Private Equity, and Jean-Baptiste Feat, global co-CIO of Tikehau Capital, will join Helicap’s advisory board.
Helicap, which was founded in 2018, offers a curated portfolio of alternative debt investments to a diverse group of authorized investors, including family offices, high-net-worth individuals, impact funds, and institutional investors.
The company has processed 300 transactions totalling US $150 million since its founding. It claimed in a statement that a local bank-backed asset management company had contributed $10 million to its private debt fund.
Over 300 million SMEs and people in Southeast Asia are unbanked or underbanked, and Helicap seeks to provide lending capital to them.
David Z. Wang and Quentin Vanoekel, two investing professionals, founded the business. Its equity backers include Credit Saison, East Ventures, Access Ventures, Voveo Capital, and Soilbuild Group Holdings.
Helicap intends to use the additional funds to increase the scope of its offerings.
